Napster founders ready Airtime social media startup

Shawn Fanning and Sean Parker, the two founders of Napster, have teamed up to launch another internet startup.

Fanning and Parker are currently raising money for a venture called Airtime, which is thought to be a video-chatting service similar to Chatroulette, but with a social network attached.

They have already raised $8m (£5m) to launch the service, with investors including movie star Ashton Kutcher, Justin Bieber's agent Scott Braun and Black Eyed Peas singer will.i.am. Airtime is expected to go live by the end of 2011.

Parker, who has previously backed Facebook and Plaxo, told TechCrunch that Airtime was designed to capitalise on all the developments in social media over the past ten years.

In an interview with the technology blog last week, Parker said that the service would help people escape the "rigid and constraining" structure of 'friends' networks on sites such as Facebook.

Fanning, who met Parker while they worked on peer-to-peer music pioneer Napster, added that the service would be "a universal host, that is introducing people, smashing people together".

It is thought that Airtime will introduce people to others who share their interests but who they don't already know. Just like Chatroulette, it is likely that Airtime users will interact mostly via webcam.

Fanning will be chief executive of Airtime and Parker - who was played by Justin Timberlake in Facebook movie The Social Network - will be executive chairman.